1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to methods and rigs for dragging a fallen animal, and in particular, to techniques for allowing cooperative dragging by two or more persons.
2. Description of Related Art
Sport hunting is a popular recreational activity and many hunters are interested in the larger game animals such as deer, elk, moose, bear, etc. Hunting these larger game animals often requires traveling to remote areas inaccessible by vehicles and often without established trails. Once the animal is taken, transporting it back to a vehicle is a daunting task. Whitetail deer harvested in the United States can routinely range up to 200 pounds (440 kg) in weight. The average buck taken in New York and Pennsylvania, for instance, is 1.5 years old and field dresses at around 125 pounds (275 kg), according to wildlife biologist from those states.
Traveling on foot, the hunter cannot bring elaborate equipment for hauling back the fallen animal. Known dragging devices employ a rope that can be lashed to the fallen animal in order to drag it. These arrangements are designed so that the hunter will drag his quarry with a bar affixed to the other end of the rope. The fingers of the hunter's two hands will be hooked around this bar in order to exerts pressure to move the animal forward. In so dragging the animal forward, excessive stress is placed on the muscles and joints of the fingers, hand, and forearm. This technique leads to rapid finger and wrist fatigue and soreness when dragging an animal whose body weight will typically range from 80 pounds to 200 pounds (176 kg to 440 kg) over uneven, rough terrain. The stress placed on the small muscles of the fingers to maintain the connection between the hunter and quarry is excessive; especially considering the weight of the quarry will represent about 66% of the hunter's body weight. These factors are compounded by the fact that the required distance to drag the quarry to an location accessible by a motorized vehicle will typically range from 0.5 miles to 1.5 miles (0.8 km to 2.4 km). It will take a single hunter 1 to 3 hours to complete this drag depending on the factors of; animal weight, roughness of terrain, differences in elevation, physical condition of the hunter and the actual distance of the required drag. (Weight ratio: 125 pounds (deer weight):190 pounds (hunter weight), or 275 kg:418 kg; with the average weight of a male in the USA being approximately 190 pounds (418 kg). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_weight.)
In some cases a team will drag the quarry and multiple drag lines will be provided, one for each person. Moreover, each team member will be constrained to using the same type of drag line so the members are walking roughly side-by-side. Walking side-by-side in the wilderness is difficult since the team must often navigate between closely spaced obstacles, such as closely spaced trees in a dense forest. In addition, members on the outer flanks will be pulling at an angle relative to the direction of travel and will therefore be working inefficiently.
Moreover, some of these traditional game dragging devices are drawn by hooking one's fingers around a bar and exerting pressure to move the load forward. With this method, the joints of the fingers, hand, wrist, and elbow must labor, in addition to the shoulder joint. This technique leads to rapid finger and wrist fatigue and soreness when dragging an animal whose body weight is typically 125 pounds (275 kg).
See also U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,563,208; 4,220,328; 4,563,981; 5,316,356; 5,447,121; 6,047,665; 6,089,636; 6,129,399; 6,142,547; 6,422,176; and 6,755,454, as well as US Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0039003.